Two Con Men and a Baby
by Jenna3
Summary: Miguel finds a baby stranded with only a note from the mother, stating that she'll return. In the meantime, the boys learn the hectic lives of parethood. *COMPLETED!!!!! I'm lovin' the positive feedback guys! Keep it up!*
1. Maria

Chapter 1  
  
It had gone on all night now. This baby upstairs screaming at the top of it's lungs. Miguel had tried to sleep, tossing and turning, burying his head in his pillow, but he couldn't drown it out. The ceiling was paper- thin. You could even hear someone breathing on the other side. But it wasn't somebody breathing. It was blood curdling baby screams.  
  
Miguel finally had enough. "OOOH, THAT'S IT!!!!!" He flung himself off the cot, pulled his shirt on, left the grubby little apartment that he and his best friend, Tulio (who was out that night), shared, and marched up the stairs. He was fuming. What kind of irresponsible, no good parents would let their kid scream it's throat raw?  
  
Miguel finally reached the apartment just above his and started to bang on the door? "Hello? Is anybody in there?" No answer, except the baby screaming. Miguel banged harder. "Hey, open the door! I know someone's in there! Could you please calm down your kid? There are people TRYING to sleep around here!" The baby's screams grew louder. "That's it! I'm breaking the door down on the count of three! 1...2...3!!!!!!" He slammed into the door. "OW!!!!!!... All right, one more time! 1...2...3!!!!" This time, the door caved in, and Miguel toppled along with it. He sat up and rubbed his sore shoulder. "Sorry ma'am, I didn't want to do that, but what you are doing around here is un-" He looked around the room, and saw no adult or, in fact, anyone else. Only the baby. "-Sanitary." Miguel breathed in shock.  
  
Someone had left this baby in here; all by it's self. "Who would do something like this?" Miguel asked, and then he saw that there was a note near the baby. He picked it up and read it.  
  
"To anyone who has found my child, my name is Rosaline. I am thirteen years old and I have no money. This is my daughter, Maria. She was born three days ago. I love her very much, but I cannot afford her. My parents threw me out of the house when they found out I was having her out of wedlock, and, since I am female, I cannot get a job. I left her here because it was the only place I could find suitable in this miserable city. Please, whoever you are, take care of her. I shall return. Rosaline... My God. "Miguel dropped the letter and looked at the baby. She had thick, red hair and brown eyes, and she was smaller than a normal baby. Miguel picked her up carefully and she started to cry louder.  
  
"Oh no no no no!!! Don't cry. I'm here. Calm down." He started to rock her back and forth, slowly and lovingly. He hummed a little and the baby slowly started to relax. "There there.... Well, that wasn't so hard!"  
  
The baby cooed lovingly and touched Miguel's hand with her little clutched fist, and Miguel couldn't help but crack a huge smile and turn red. "Aaaaaaw, you're so-" Before Miguel could finish, the baby hiccupped and spit up all over shirt and a little in his hair. "-Sweet."  
  
Miguel took the baby up to his apartment, laid the baby down in his bed, and he slept in Tulio's. After all, why should he get throw up all over his own bed? 


	2. Can We Keep Her?

Chapter 2  
  
Tulio walked up the stairs to the apartment. He had been running from the guards all night, but he still managed to swipe a few coin purses to last he and Miguel the rest of the month. "All I need now is a long sleep." he thought. As he walked, he heard the sound of a baby crying. He decided to ignore it, but as he came closer and closer to the apartment door, the crying grew loud. Wait... what if... "No. He had better not!" As he opened the door, he saw what he had been dreading. Miguel, sitting on the floor, rocking a screaming baby.  
  
"Miguel!"  
  
"Uh.... Y-yes?" Miguel smiled a little, knowing that he was about to get yelled at.  
  
"I have two questions I want to ask you. One: Why do you have a baby? And two: WHAT IS THAT CHUNKY STUFF ON MY BED?!?!?!?!"  
  
Miguel's face drooped. "Uh.... Well, I can answer one of those questions." He took a long, deep breath, and....  
  
"Last night I was trying to get to sleep but I couldn't because this baby was crying upstairs so I went upstairs to get it's parents to make her be quiet but when I got in the room there were no parents just a baby and a note that was from the baby's mother and it said that she was thirteen and she couldn't keep the baby because she was homeless and poor but when she found a job and a home suitable to raise herself and her child comfortably that she would return and take her back so I said to myself 'Well I can't leave her here alone to die' so I took her with me downstairs to live with us for a while until her mother comes back!" Miguel finished his long, continuous speech with a long gasp. "And that's all that happened." he said, panting.  
  
Tulio just stood there, shocked. He sat down. "Wow... I didn't really get all of that, but WOW!!!! How do you know for certain that she'll come back?"  
  
"The note said. She said she promised that she would return!" Miguel handed the note to Tulio and he read it over and over.  
  
"Miguel, we can't keep her. You have to take her back to were you found her."  
  
"What?! But she was alone. She'll die without us!"  
  
"Miguel, we can't keep her! We can barely keep ourselves alive! Besides, a baby would be better off without parents like us."  
  
"But Tulio, you came from a big family, and I spent practically all my childhood raising my sister. We're perfect!"  
  
"Miguel!" Tulio yelled sharply. "We can not keep her. Maybe we can leave her at an orphanage or another building."  
  
"NO!" It was Miguel's turn to shout, which surprised Tulio. "I lived in an orphanage for only a few months and it was a living hell! I was beaten and starved like an animal! She will not... go to an orphanage." Miguel sighed and continued softly. "And also, there are no other people in this miserable city that would raise a child. Who knows what they would do to her... Please can we keep her?"  
  
Tulio groaned loudly. "Mi-gueeeeel..."  
  
"Puh-leeeeeeeeeeeease?" Miguel pleaded, his eyes big and his face pouting.  
  
"Oh, not the face! No no no no no no... AAAH!!!!! ALL RIGHT!!!!! WE'LL KEEP HER!!!!!!"  
  
"YAY!" Miguel lifted the baby up in the air.  
  
"But that girl better come back or I will hunt her down!" Tulio crossed his arms scowled.  
  
Just then the baby started to cry again. "Tulio, she needs to be fed."  
  
"Give her some beer."  
  
"TULIO!" Miguel gasped.  
  
"Well, I'm sorry Miguel, but as you can see-" he patted his chest, "I ain't exactly lactating!"  
  
"Well where are we going to get milk, then?" After a few seconds, Miguel got up and pounded Tulio's head to the wall.  
  
"OW!!! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!?!?!?!"  
  
"Well, you usually get all of your ideas when you hit your head against something!"  
  
"Well at least WARN me before you do something like-" Tulio stopped talking. He had an idea. "Hey. Wait a minute. Where does milk come from?"  
  
"Uh... cows?"  
  
"Bingo!" 


	3. Got Milk?

Chapter 3  
  
"Tulio, I don't know..." Miguel whispered, holding the baby as he and Tulio crept through the stables of a nearby farm.  
  
"What? You said it needed to be fed."  
  
"Her name is MARIA, not IT. And also, if the farmer catches us-"  
  
"Miguel, please. I know what I'm doing. See, there's Helena."  
  
"Who?"  
  
A low mooing sound gave Miguel his answer. Helena was the farmer's milk cow.  
  
"How the heck do you know what the cows name is?" Miguel asked.  
  
"Oh, I have my ways of knowing." Tulio smirked.  
  
"You slept with a girl who lives here, haven't you?" Miguel asked.  
  
"You leave Catherine out of this... Alright, milk her." Tulio said, stepping back and gesturing towards it.  
  
Miguel scoffed. "I can't milk her! I have to hold Maria."  
  
"Well then I'll hold her."  
  
"She doesn't like you!"  
  
"You don't know that. You just want to hold her because YOU like her!"  
  
"All right fine! Take her! But don't blame me when she starts to cry and gets us killed." Miguel handed the baby gently to Tulio and rolled up his sleeves. Helena mooed alarmingly as he approached her, causing him to stop in his tracks.  
  
"Shh shh shh shh! Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you." He walked up slowly to the old cow and stroked her nose until she calmed down. Then he grabbed a bucket and a stool and began to milk her. Just as the bucket began to get half full, Maria started to whine. Miguel stopped milking and tensed up. He turned around to see Tulio shaking her to get her to be quiet, but only caused her whimpers to grow louder.  
  
"Tulio!" Miguel hissed. "Stop shaking her!"  
  
"She won't be quiet!"  
  
"Well then rock her, don't shake her!"  
  
"Fine!" Tulio stopped shaking her and started to rock her in large, swaying motions. She started to go to sleep, that is, until...  
  
BONK!  
  
Tulio knocked her head into the wall.  
  
"Whoops..."  
  
Maria let out a huge scream in pain and shock. Miguel ran to her and covered her mouth.  
  
"What the hell did you do to her?"  
  
"I'm sorry, I-"  
  
"WHO'S THERE?!" Tulio and Miguel froze as a large man with a gun stood in the doorway. "YOU!!" he screamed, pointing at Tulio.  
  
"No! I just have one of those faces." Tulio grinned  
  
"I told you to keep away from my daughter!" And with that, he shot at Tulio, missing him, and it ricocheted off the wall, causing a lot of noise. The cow made a huge bellow in fright and began to run around the stables, causing chickens to squawk and horses to neigh. Maria screamed louder, and the farmer fired again, just barely missing Miguel.  
  
"RUN!!!" Tulio scurried off with the screaming baby, with Miguel soon following with the bucket.  
  
They ran all the way back to their apartment, locking the door and sliding to he ground in exhaustion. It took them a few minutes to catch their breath, ignoring the baby's screams.  
  
"I told you she didn't like you!" Miguel panted. "Of all the brother's and sisters you have, how can you be so incompetent?!" Tulio didn't say anything, but glared.  
  
Finally, they took heed of Maria's screams. "How are we going to feed her?"  
  
"Don't look at me. YOU'RE her favorite." Tulio grinned smugly.  
  
"Well YOU'RE the one with the plans!"  
  
"Alright alright alright, let me think. And DON'T slam my head into the wall again!"  
  
"Fine. You already did it to Maria."  
  
"Shh!" Tulio closed his eyes, rubbed his temples, and thought deeply. After a minute, he opened his eyes. "I'll be right back." He got up and left the room. A few minutes later, Tulio came back with a bought pair of riding gloves.  
  
"What are the gloves for?"  
  
"Just wait." Tulio poured some milk into one of the gloves. Then he bit a little hole into one of the fingers. "Hand her to me, please." Miguel handed her to Tulio. He then put the glove finger into her mouth, and began feeding her. "See? I'm not incompetent with babies." Tulio smirked. "I was just a little rusty."  
  
After she was fed, they put Maria to bed, and they fell asleep as soon as they hit the pillow. 


	4. A Father's Love

Chapter 4  
  
It didn't last long.  
  
Not even two hours later, Maria started to scream at the top of her lungs. Tulio felt even more exhausted than when he went to bed. "Miguel, go see what's wrong." he groaned.  
  
"Why me? You go! I'm tired."  
  
"And you think I'm just bouncin' off the walls? I'm sore, I have a terrible headache, and I haven't had a good night's sleep in two days. And besides, YOU said you wanted to keep her, not me. Now get off your ass and go help her!" Before Miguel Miguel could argue, Tulio began to snore lightly in his sleep.  
  
With a loud, angry groan, he got out of his cot and crawled over to the baby. "Hey. What's the matter?" Maria answered him with a whimpering cry. "Well, um, I-I'm really tired, so just go back to sleep, alright?" She let out a loud scream and Miguel felt stupid. "Like THAT would of worked... All right. I'll hold you until you go to sleep." He gently picked her up off of the blanket and cradled her in his arms. "You know, I could have let you up there to die, but I'm too nice to do that. So you had better be grateful for the life we're giving you."  
  
She looked up at him with big eyes and started to suck her thumb. "You're not even listening to me, are you? Well, I guess it's not your fault. You've only been in the world for a couple of days, abandoned, and picked up by a couple of crooks. But let me tell you, if any of the other guys had gotten to you before I did, you'd been sold for beer money... You are cute, though. I'll give you that. But you have caused nothing but trouble the moment I found you... Do you even know what I'm talking about?"  
  
He looked down at the baby. She had fallen asleep while he was jabbering on about nothing.  
  
Miguel sighed happily. "Thank God." He gently placed her back down on the floor and gently crept back to his bed. Before he laid down, though, he took one last look at her.  
  
Her chest was rising and falling slowly, and he could hear her breathing. Every so often, he would see her little nose twitch, and he would even see her smile a little. Miguel was fascinated. He had seen his little sister as a baby, by now he was old enough to really appreciate it. How could something so small make his heart melt every time it made the slightest little movement? He then realized that he had fallen in love with her. He felt that he should give her everything in the world. He felt that he should give up his own life just to see her smile. He felt like... A father.  
  
Miguel forgot all about his exhaustion, and spent the rest of the night watching her sleep. 


	5. A Miracle!

Chapter 5  
  
"Tulio?... Tulio! Wake up!"  
  
Tulio felt a sharp jab in his side and woke up in a gasp. "OW! What is it now?!"  
  
"We have no diapers."  
  
"So? Why would we need-... Oh yeah...Her. I thought I was just having a nightmare."  
  
"Tulio, get up. We need diapers, because frankly, she smells."  
  
Tulio got up and walked over to the baby. Miguel was right. She stunk. "Well we have no diapers, so we're gonna have to use something else." He looked around the room to see what they had. "How about the table cloth?..... No, we're using that for her bed. Hmmmm... Well, we have nothing else but the shirts on our-" He stopped talking when he saw a smile creep across Miguel's face.  
  
"OH NO! NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!!!! We can't use our clothes!"  
  
"Oh come on, we can wash them!"  
  
Tulio calmly smiled, but Miguel could tell that he was fuming inside. "Yeah, that'll be nice." Tulio said, then the volume in his voice started to increase. "We'll just be walkin' around the town with huge STAINS on our shirts. Then people will come up and ask 'Hey losers, you guys need new clothes!' and then we'll have to say 'Well I'm sorry, but we had to let SOME BABY WE DON'T EVEN KNOW CRAP IN OUR SHIRTS BECAUSE WE ARE NOTHING BUT POOR-STUPID-NO GOOD-CROOKS!"  
  
Maria started to cry with Tulio's sudden outburst. "Tulio, stop it! You're making her cry!"  
  
"Oh stop it Tulio, you're makin' her cry, blah blah blah!" Tulio said in an annoying voice. "I don't care what you say, I am NOT letting her use my clothes!" Tulio turned his back to both of them and crossed his arm.  
  
"WELL FINE!!!!!" Miguel screamed back. "It seems that I'm the only one in this world who cares about her. It's not her fault that this is happening, it's mine! SO QUIT YELLING AT HER!!!!!!!"  
  
Tulio felt a little guilty about yelling, but still kept his stubborn posture.  
  
"If you want, I'LL use my clothes for her!" Miguel took off his shirt and began to change her diaper. He gagged a few times from the smell, but succeeded in wrapping his shirt around her waist and legs to form a makeshift diaper.  
  
"Now, I'm going to go wash this in the fountain, so please don't try to kill her!" Miguel angrily slammed the door, causing Tulio to flinch.  
  
He looked down at the baby, who was looking at him as well. "What are YOU looking at?" The baby girl made a little sighing sound and stretched her arm out. Tulio couldn't help but smile a little. "Well, I... GUESS you're kinda cute." He sat on the floor and picked her up carefully. "You know, I have a cousin named Maria. But she's a hooker, so she doesn't count." Maria looked up at him with big brown eyes, and it seemed that she was listening.  
  
"There was also this girl Maria that I used to like. I was seven and she was six, but she was very pretty. She had curly brown hair and green eyes, but she said I had cooties and she punched me in the eye... Most embarrassing moment of my life, getting beat up by a little girl." You know, I-" Tulio was interrupted when Maria wrapped her little fist around his finger and squeezed it.  
  
Tulio welt a warm sensation sweep all over his body. He had never felt it before, and it felt good. Oh, she was so small. So perfect. He then realized he had fallen in love with her. He put her head on his shoulder and rocked her very slowly. He closed his eyes and hummed a little. That was until heard it.  
  
"Aaaaaaaaaw..."  
  
It was Miguel, standing in the doorway, with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. "It just.... so magical." He pretended to cry and wipe an imaginary tear off his eye. Then he burst out laughing.  
  
"Hey shut up, man. She's cute!"  
  
Miguel stopped laughing and put his hand to his chest. "Well, I'll tell you one thing. I believe in miracles now!!!" 


	6. Maria's Gone!

Chapter 6  
  
A month had gone by.  
  
Miguel and Tulio were a mere shadow of what they used to look like. They both had lost a lot of weight, since they used all the money they got to buy food, clothes, diapers and toys for Maria. They barely slept and barely went out. They were unshaven, sore and were nearly insane. Every time the baby made even the slightest whimper, it was always pandemonium. Even though they truly loved her, it was killing them.  
  
One day, as Miguel and Tulio were staring off into space and trying to keep awake, there was a knock at the door. "Cervantes? Saldovar? Open up! Your rent was due yesterday!" It was Inigo, the landlord.  
  
"Miguel... Go get it... I don't think I can get up." Tulio gave a little, pathetic sigh, and painfully went to sleep, giving out loud snores.  
  
Miguel groaned as he got up, fumbled for about a minute with the locks, and opened the door. "Uh...What?"  
  
"Jesus Christ Cervantes, you look like crap!" Inigo was a skinny, perverted little man, with greasy brown hair and squinty eyes. But Miguel had to admit, he looked a lot better than he did right now. "Just please tell me what you want."  
  
"Your rent was due yesterday!"  
  
"Oh... Oh, okay...uh... J-just a minute." Miguel fumbled around in his pockets and gave him a fistful of coins. "Take it, I'm too tired to count it." As Miguel began to close the door, Inigo slipped his foot in to stop it. "Look Cervantes, I'm really not the kind of man to say this, but I'm worried about the two of you. This kid you found is, uh, screwin' up your lives. And if this rent stuff continues, then how am I gonna pay my hookers?"  
  
"Oh lord, that would be terrible." Miguel said sarcastically. "Now, if you will excuse me-"  
  
"Wait wait wait wait wait, I have more!..... Now, I'm gonna do you a little favor. How about I take the kid for the night, while you two catch up on your...uh…'Beauty sleep.' Cuz frankly, heh heh heh, ya need it. How about it Cervantes?... Cervantes?"  
  
Miguel had fallen asleep standing up in the doorway.  
  
"CERVANTES!"  
  
"I'll get it, what flavor?!" Miguel screamed, his eyes popping open and then immediately drooping again.  
  
"How about it, man?"  
  
"Huh?... Okay sure, no problem..."  
  
"Excellent! Now, let me just get the little wench and I'll be on my way." Inigo walked into the room and picked up the sleeping baby. "Whew! Man, this place stinks of sour milk and crap! Might I suggest some incense, or some scented candles? Hehehe. Buenos noches, mis amigos!" And with that he closed the door, and Miguel fell into his bed face first and blacked out.  
  
-------------------------  
  
Tulio woke up the next day and cracked his neck back into place. It took a minute to open his eyes, and he looked around the room. He saw Miguel with his face in his pillow and snoring loudly. He looked over to where Maria's bed was, only to find it empty. At first he didn't seem to mind, but reality slowly crept into his mind. "Huh, Maria's gone... Maria's gone?... MARIA'S GONE?!?!?!?!?!?! MIGUUUUUEEEEEEEEL!!!!!!!!"  
  
"Mmm, yes, I'm a natural blonde..."  
  
"MIGUEL, WAKE UP!!!!!!!!! MARIA'S GONE!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
"Huh? No she's not, she's-" Miguel glanced over his shoulder to find Maria's empty bed. "NOT IN BED!!!!!!!"  
  
"What the hell happened, Miguel?!?!  
  
"I-I-I-I-I don't know!!!!!!! The last thing I remember was looking at Maria, then I was at the door, then I fell!!!!!!  
  
"Wait a minute." Tulio said. "You were at the door? Do you remember anyone coming in?"  
  
"No!!!... Wait a minute. YES!!!! OH MY GOD, MARIA'S BEEN KIDNAPPED!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
"Now now, w-w-we don't know that for sure."  
  
But it was to late. Miguel was bawling. "Oh my god, I let Maria get kidnaaaaaapped!!!!! I was supposed to watch her, and...and...AAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!!!" Miguel raised his head and screamed as tears came streaming down his cheeks.  
  
"Miguel! Miguel! MIGUEL!!!!!!" Tulio slapped Miguel hard across the face and left him shocked, but still sniffling.  
  
"Alright, now, we're going to look for her, and we're are going to find her. Okay?"  
  
Miguel finally caught his breath from all of his screaming. "O-okay."  
  
"Alright, let's go."  
  
---------------  
  
"Have you seen a baby around here?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Excuse me, have you seen a little baby girl?"  
  
"No."  
  
Miguel and Tulio popped their heads in every single door in the complex, looking for Maria. But none of them had seen her. Miguel started to hyperventilate again after they looked in the last apartment. "We've lost her!!!!! What will we do when the mother comes back?!?! How will explain to this girl that we lost the child that we worked SO HARD TO PROTECT?!?!?! WHAT ARE WE-"  
  
"Miguel! Relax!"  
  
"Re-lax?..." Miguel slowly turned to Tulio, his left eye twitching. "Don't you dare tell me to relax!!! What kind of crazy hypocrite are you?! Who's the guy who's always trying to avoid any danger? You! Who's the guy who worries to the extreme? You! Who always says 'I don't think this is such a good idea.'? YOU!!! YOU YOU YOU!!! Mister 'un-relaxy-er!'" Miguel buried his face in his hands and started to sob.  
  
"But Miguel, we still have one apartment to check!"  
  
Miguel panted a little and looked up. "Huh?!?! Who's?!?!"  
  
"Inigo's."  
  
"Oh puh-lease, Tulio. I'm not THAT careless!!!!!"  
  
"It won't hurt to look. Now come on."  
  
--------------------------  
  
Tulio knocked on the door of Inigo's apartment. "Just a minute!" came a voice. After a little shuffling, Inigo opened the door, and in his arms was...  
  
"MARIA!!!!!!!" A huge grin cracked on Miguel's face, and he grabbed the baby and started to kiss all over her face with big smacks. Then he put on the most evil face he had and hissed at Inigo. "How DARE you steal her from us."  
  
"Yeah pal, you got a lot of explaining to do."  
  
"What? Cervantes, don't you remember anything about last night? You said you'd let me take care of the kid so you could get some sleep."  
  
"Oh yeah right, like I would-... Wait... OH YEAH!!!!!!!!... Uh, I guess I did, didn't I?" Miguel gave a sheepish chuckle and turned a shade of pink.  
  
"Maybe next time I'll ask you when you're fully awake. Okay boys, I have to admit, she's a doll. Whenever you need a break, I'm here for ya. But, just to let you know, I'm gonna have to raise your rent a little. After all, I don't baby-sit for free. Adios!" He slammed the door in their faces, before opening it again. "Oh, and by the way. Babies? Total chick magnets!" SLAM!  
  
"That's just nasty." Tulio said, and they went back to their apartment, kissing Maria and falling deeper in love with her.  
  
But now, they weren't afraid to let anyone else love her too. 


	7. Rosaline Returns

Chapter 7  
  
"Come on Maria! Say it! Mi-guel! It's not hard! Mmmmmmiiiiiiiiigueeeeellll!"  
  
"Meh!" Maria babbled.  
  
"No no no, not 'Meh'! Mi-guel."  
  
"Meh!"  
  
Miguel sighed. They had had the baby for six months now, and her hair had grown very red and curly. Tulio also bought her very cute little dresses and ribbons. She was without a doubt very cute. 'Now if only she could talk', Miguel thought.  
  
"Okay okay, you got the Meh part down. Now all you have to do is say Guel. Mi-guel."  
  
"Meh!"  
  
"Okay, that's enough for today. Let's try again tomorrow. Because now... It's time fow Mawia to take a baf!" Miguel began to talk in baby talk and gibberish and started to take off her dress. "Yesh, it's time fow a baf! Baf time fow the wittew baby giwl!"  
  
Tulio suddenly walked in the door with a bag of groceries. "Hey Miguel."  
  
"Hewwo Tuwio- ER!- I mean hi."  
  
"Uh, what was-"  
  
"NOTHING!!"  
  
"Whatever, Meh." Tulio found it somewhat funny to call Miguel that, much to Miguel's annoyance.  
  
"Did you get what was on my list or not?"  
  
"Yes, I got diapers, oranges, bread, vegetables, and... A NEW RIBBON!" Tulio said, pulling out a new purple ribbon.  
  
"My God Tulio, enough with the ribbons! She has enough to put on a maypole. Besides, it is very unlike you to buy such an expensive color."  
  
"It's not expensive for my little strawberry!" Tulio rushed over to Maria, growling and kissing her tummy and causing her to laugh her cute little screeching laugh. Suddenly there was a knock at the door.  
  
"Who could that be?" Miguel asked.  
  
"I don't know. Go answer it." Tulio said as he continued to play with the baby.  
  
Miguel stood up and opened the door. Standing there was a young girl, with red hair and sad hazel eyes. "Hello senor." she said politely with a small voice.  
  
The girl's red hair caught Miguel off guard. He was afraid of her being who he thought she was. "Hello... Um, who are you?"  
  
Suddenly the girl gasped. "Maria!"  
  
It was exactly what Miguel had feared. It was Rosaline, Maria's mother.  
  
"Oh, my baby sweetheart!" She clamped her hands over her mouth and started to cry. "Oh, may I please come in?"  
  
"Of-of course." Miguel stepped aside and let the girl enter. It was taking a lot of his strength not to sob.  
  
Rosaline ran into the room and scooped up the baby. "Oh my darling! Oh, mommy has missed you so much. You are so beautiful! Look at your hair! Oh, my baby girl!"  
  
Tulio was still sitting on the ground, looking dazed. He sputtered, trying to speak, and Rosaline gasped. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I have forgotten my manners. My name is Rosaline." She held out her hand for Tulio to shake it.  
  
"We know your name. There's no need to say it again." Tulio replied, rather coldly. The girl's smile faded, and she looked at the ground, looking as if she was about to cry. Tulio seemed to remember that she was just a girl and shook her hand. "I'm-uh-I'm sorry. I've seem to forgotten my manners as well. My name is Tulio Saldovar and this my friend Miguel Cervantes."  
  
"Hello." Miguel said quietly.  
  
"And-uh... I guess this is your baby, huh?"  
  
"Oh, yes she is. I just.... I just want to thank both of you so much for raising her. I can't believe someone actually found her and raised her so wonderfully like you two did. For nights I dreamed that she was taken to one of those dreadful orphanages or even murdered... OH GOD, I was so afraid!!!!!" She started to sob, and soon Maria started to cry as well. Miguel took the Maria from her as she went to Tulio and hugged him, and he hugged her back. "I didn't want to leave her! I really didn't! But I was homeless and I had no job... I was sure she would die if I kept her..."  
  
"Well, have you found a job yet?"  
  
Rosaline sniffled and wiped her eye. "Yes. But..."  
  
"But what?"  
  
"I'm a prostitute! Isn't that pathetic?!" She started to cry even harder and buried her face into Tulio's chest, and he patted her back awkwardly.  
  
"There there. It's alright."  
  
"No it's not all right! You see, I still can't take her!"  
  
A mixture of pity for the girl and happiness for the hope of still keeping Maria flooded into Miguel. But he decided to go with the pity. "But why? Why did you come then?"  
  
"Because I was afraid for her life! I wanted to see if she found good people to be with and it turns out she had! I would have gladly taken her if she was with bad people."  
  
Tulio laughed nervously. "Yeah, um, about that... You see... We AREN'T good people. We're thieves. Everything in this room and the clothes that she has was from the money we stole."  
  
Rosaline stared at them with disbelief. "But-uh- If it helps... We kinda had no choice. You see, we were framed like, a year ago by a merchant, so we couldn't get a job without getting arrested so, in order to survive, we stole money."  
  
"But not from good people!" Miguel chimed in. "We steal from other bad people. Like drunks, other thieves and prosti-"  
  
Tulio elbowed him in the stomach to cut him off. It did, causing him to wheeze a little. Rosaline sighed. "Well, I guess you had no choice for your lives like I had with mine. Women don't get a lot of job options."  
  
There was an awkward silence, and then Miguel finally spoke up again. "So... Are you going to take her with you?"  
  
"I don't know. What do you two want? I leave it entirely up to you."  
  
Miguel and Tulio looked each other, and came to the same agreement in their minds.  
  
"We... We think you should take her. She's your daughter and you shouldn't miss out on any more of your life."  
  
Rosaline nodded and smiled. "I was kind of hoping you'd say that." Miguel sadly gave Maria back to Rosaline. "I'll try and keep in touch with two of you. Is there anything of hers I need?" They gave Rosaline all of her belongings and Miguel informed her on all the baby info she would need to know.  
  
"She, uh, eats at seven in the morning, then noon, then at six, and then there's the midnight feeding. She likes to chew on carrots because she's teething. Also, she likes to be sung to. She goes through four diapers a day and must be bathed every day. We were just about to give her one so... You should give her one when you get home."  
  
"Thank you very much senors. You two are so kind. You don't deserve to be thieves......... Would you like to say goodbye to her?"  
  
They didn't have to be asked twice. They gave her kisses on her cheeks and talked in baby talk. Tulio took the purple ribbon out of his pocket and tied it into a bow in Maria's hair. "Bye bye, Maria." Tulio said sadly. "We'll miss you."  
  
"Yes." Miguel barely got the word over the tight knot that was in his throat.  
  
"Goodbye Senor Saldovar. Senor Cervantes. Thank you so much for everything." Rosaline turned around, and Maria stared back at the two men, and something amazing happened.  
  
"Meh-grrril."  
  
That word nearly ripped Miguel's heart into a million pieces. As they both went inside, the room felt so empty. So cold. They couldn't help the tears fall down their face. 


	8. I Miss Her

Chapter 8  
  
Tulio and Miguel treated themselves to a night at the bar to cheer themselves up. There they met some old friends, had a couple of drinks, and caught up with the latest news. Well, Tulio did at least. Miguel just sat alone at his table, not touching his beer and staring off into space.  
  
The bartender seemed to notice. "Hey Saldovar, what's the matter with Cervantes?"  
  
Tulio looked over to see Miguel and sighed. "Well, uh... You know that little baby we were taking care of the last few months?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Well... The mother returned and took her away."  
  
"Oh... Well that's good isn't it?"  
  
"Oh yeah, it's wonderful!... It is for Maria, and that's all that matters. Miguel's just a little depressed, that's all."  
  
The old man seemed to sense some sadness in Tulio's voice. "What about you? Don't you miss her?"  
  
Tulio laughed a little, then turned all macho. "Please! The kid wasn't even ours to begin with! And even if she was, she would have a horrible life with two crooks for parents."  
  
"Yeah, I guess. I guess the parents were rich and better off, eh?"  
  
Tulio's smile vanished and started to fidget nervously. "Well, er, no... She's actually a teenage prostitute with no husband and she's kind of homeless."  
  
"What? You can't be serious. I've seen kids with parents who sell themselves with rags for clothes and they have all these diseases and whatnot. Some of the lucky ones are taken to orphanages, and their lives are miserable there too!"  
  
"Look! What's done is done. I don't really need an argument right now!"  
  
"There's no need to get angry, Saldovar."  
  
Tulio jumped from his stool and started to scream. "Well how would you feel, huh?!?! I mean y-y-you care for this little girl as if she were your own. You spend every hour of your day, for half a year, trying to feed her, love her, protect and care for her. And then, one day, some kid that she doesn't even know takes her away from you, but you can't just tell her to get lost because you'd feel like a trying to steal her own daughter and it feels absolutely disgusting!!! Then you end up wasting the rest of your days in a bar, drowning all your troubles away, just because the one thing that you loved, the one thing you helped lived, the ONE THING THAT MADE YOUR LIFE WHOLE AND COMPLETE... Is stripped out... forever..."  
  
Tulio stood there for a minute, and then realized that everyone was staring at him. Some looked sympathetic. Some looked at him like he was a fool. Tulio face twisted a little, then he bolted out of the bar without even paying.  
  
Miguel had saw the whole thing and was astonished. He quickly stumbled out of his chair, dumped some coins onto the bar (after saying many apologies) and ran after Tulio into the night. "Tulio! Wait up!" Tulio had already walked two blocks, so Miguel guessed that he really was very upset to walk so fast like that. "Tulio! STOP! Wait!" Finally Tulio stopped and allowed Miguel to catch up, who was panting and wheezing a little. "Is it true?......... What all you just said?"  
  
"Of course it's true!" Tulio snapped. "You think I'd embarrass myself like that for nothing?!"  
  
"Yes." Miguel said, cracking a smile in hopes to cheer him up. Tulio just lowered his head and continued to walk slowly this time. "But it's like you said! Crooks like us shouldn't have children! We don't deserve them. They're better off without us... Remember?"  
  
"Yes.... I remember what I said."  
  
"Then what's the problem?"  
  
Tulio looked at him with tears brimming. "I just don't believe it anymore... I miss Maria. It's only been a few hours since she let, and I'm dying."  
  
"Yeah. I feel the same way."  
  
"And she learned your name. She never learned mine."  
  
"Well, actually... She almost did, but it was kind of embarrassing."  
  
Tulio brightened up a little "She did?..... What did she say?"  
  
"She said... Tool." Miguel almost smiled but he hid it behind his hand.  
  
"Tool?... Tool... Heh, that's funny! That's freaking hilarious" Tulio started to laugh hysterically, and Miguel did too. It took them a few moments to catch their breath and they were still smiling. "She was something, wasn't she?"  
  
"Yeah." Miguel said slowly. "It's freezing out here. Why don't we go home?"  
  
"Yeah, alright."  
  
The two friends walked home, sharing past memories of their baby and them and laughing all the way. When they opened the door to the apartment, their was Rosaline, holding a screaming Maria, and sobbing.  
  
"I can't do it!" 


	9. Happy Endings

Chapter 9  
  
Miguel was stunned. "What? What are you talking about? I thought-"  
  
"She hates me! She won't stop crying! I tried everything you told me to do, but she won't stop crying! She loves you two, not me! I was wrong to take her away from her home."  
  
"But she could learn to live without us. Your her mother, we're not."  
  
"But you two would miss her as well."  
  
Tulio scoffed. "Us? No... We're men! We don't have any emotions-"  
  
"I heard you two crying as I left."  
  
Tulio's face fell. "We- well, it's just-....... You see there was something in my eye at the time-"  
  
"Yeah, mine too." Miguel smiled nervously  
  
"Yeah, cause our place is so dirty. So there was stuff in our eyes, and- Oh! See? There's something in my eye now! Ow!" Tulio started to rub his eyes with his fist, and Miguel copied. Rosaline gave them a disbelieving look, so they stopped and stared at the floor, blushing.  
  
"Listen, Maria may belong to me by blood, but she belongs to you two by heart. And that's what every child needs. Here." She handed Maria to Tulio, who immediately stopped crying.  
  
"Oh come on!" Tulio said, rolling his eyes. "That doesn't prove a thing! See?" He handed Maria back to Rosaline, and she started screaming even louder. "Oh. Uh- Here let me see her." He took Maria back and she stopped crying again. "Hmm...... Okay. How about I hand her back to you, then you hand it to Miguel-"  
  
"Senor Saldovar, face it! She hates me!" She fell to her knees, buried her face into her hands, and started to cry again.  
  
"She sure is weepy, eh?" Tulio snickered.  
  
"Shut up Tulio!" Miguel growled, and Tulio stopped. Then he bent down and hugged Rosaline. "There there. It's alright. She doesn't hate you. She just doesn't know you. I mean, when we first got her, we went through a living hell! You know, the endless days without sleep, the worrying, the money problems, the hysterical screaming in the night from Tulio-"  
  
"Hey! I did not-... Yeah, okay, I did."  
  
"But then, she got to know us, we got to know her, and soon we were all living in peace and harmony." Miguel smiled.  
  
Rosaline still cried. "That may be true, but I still can't keep her. I'm a prostitute, so I have to be out all night. And that's when she needs me the most! But I can't stop working, no matter how much I want to, because I have to feed her. I live alone, I have no friends or anyone I can count on. And what's worse, when I got home my landlord gave me an eviction notice. I can't keep her and I can't live without her..... I feel so confused." She sobbed into Miguel's arms and he hugged her tighter.  
  
"Live with us!" Tulio yelled.  
  
Both Rosaline and Miguel looked up and, in unison, said, "What!?"  
  
"Uh- I-I said....... Live with us?" Tulio smiled. Both of them looked at Tulio in disbelief. Tulio lowered his head. "Sorry."  
  
"That's a great idea!" Miguel smiled. He helped Rosaline off the floor. "You can live with us!"  
  
Rosaline shook her head. "What? Are you two absolutely, totally, 100% out of your minds?"  
  
"A little bit." Tulio said, and he and Miguel gave her huge, insane, flashing smiles. Rosaline laughed a little, finally revealing a very pretty smile. "How could I stay here? There's no room!"  
  
"So what!?" Miguel cried, and he started to speak with enthusiasm and wide hand movements. "We'll buy you a new cot, we'll take care of Maria while your out, we'll take care of food, clothes, diapers, and any other stuff that she'll need, we'll pay for your rent, we'll help with the laundry, and we'll do anything, JUST PLEASE SAY YES!!!!!!!"  
  
Rosaline gave them an uncertain look. "Well........"  
  
"Give her the face!!!" Tulio yelled, and Miguel did. "PUH- LEEEEEEEEASE?!"  
  
Rosaline started to laugh hysterically. "Oh, you guys are impossible! But I have only one condition!"  
  
"Anything!" Miguel said.  
  
"I'll pay my own rent and groceries." Rosaline smiled.  
  
"So your staying?" Tulio said.  
  
"Sure... I guess it's for the best." Rosaline said.  
  
"YEEEEEES!!!!!!" Tulio and Miguel cried, high fiveing. "Little fives!" Tulio said, slapping Maria hand gently.  
  
And so, Rosaline and Maria moved in with our boys, and they lived happily until the El Dorado adventure began. But don't worry. They met again years later for even more adventures. But that's... another story.  
  
The End. 


End file.
